If you have an electric bike in your household, how do you charge it?

[BlackAmericanoNoSugar]

Do you bring the bike inside and plug it in? Do you run a cable out of a window? Did you get an outdoor socket installed?

DS is thinking of getting an electric bike and I'm just wondering how it normally works. I have a car charging thingy outside, but I doubt very much that I would be able to use it for a bike because that would be convenient and my life is never convenient.

The battery comes out and we pop it on the kitchen table and plug it in. Its one of the reasons that we didnt want one that doesnt have a removable battery

As above, mine has a removal battery pack - that was one of the ‘musts’ when I was getting an electric bike for the commute.

I'm glad I asked. I will add 'removable battery' to the requirements when he's looking at models. Thanks.

A further question about removable batteries. Will he need to take the battery off the bike while it's parked outside college or wherever?

@BlackAmericanoNoSugar

A further question about removable batteries. Will he need to take the battery off the bike while it's parked outside college or wherever?

Good question. We're so paranoid about our bikes getting nicked that when we're out and about we dont leave them, even eating outside pubs in 5 degree cold in order to have the bikes next to us. We dont use them for commuting but for leisure. But it makes it less desirable if you dont have a battery on it but equally Im always worried that if the battery isnt in it, then the connections are exposed to the elements. Our batteries are within the body of the bike rather than being the ones that go on the pannier rack. I think the ones that go on the back would be better, but then they are easily replaced if someone nicks it without the battery

@BlackAmericanoNoSugar

A further question about removable batteries. Will he need to take the battery off the bike while it's parked outside college or wherever?

No, well not in my experience. When it’s finished charging, you lock it back onto the bike with a key, which I tend to leave at home, as I only ever charge it at home.

Mine however is locked with a D lock at the front and the back wheel is separately locked in a locked bike shed at work. As a PP said, the battery does make it more desirable. The batteries are heavy so I wouldn’t be banking on carrying it round - secure lock up is the only option really.

Our batteries are within the body of the bike rather than being the ones that go on the pannier rack. I think the ones that go on the back would be better, but then they are easily replaced if someone nicks it without the battery

With the greatest respect, I disagree with this. Back mounted batteries make the bike really unstable. The better bikes are the ones were they are centrally located on the frame.

I have y removable battery. The whole kit is aftermarket, I paid someone to convert the bike to electric. I do worry a little parking up and leaving it. I take two decent locks and I have left my bike locked up all over the place and so far been fine. I suspect the longer you leave it, the riskier, also if you're in the habit of leaving it in the same place.

I definitely cycle more and further than I used to since getting the bike converted.

Also my battery is mounted on the back and I haven't noticed it making the bike unstable.

@AliceW89

Our batteries are within the body of the bike rather than being the ones that go on the pannier rack. I think the ones that go on the back would be better, but then they are easily replaced if someone nicks it without the battery

With the greatest respect, I disagree with this. Back mounted batteries make the bike really unstable. The better bikes are the ones were they are centrally located on the frame.

I wasnt clear. I meant from the perspective of my own worry that when the battery is not in situ, that the connections are exposed to the elements.

The batteries at the rear have their connections tucked away, my bike has a centrally located battery and when the battery is out the little connectors are exposed more

Apologies @bellac11 I see where you are coming from!

Mine has a removable battery in the frame so I remove and charge.
It requires a key to remove it from the frame.

Make sure it is properly insured and your son understands the requirements for locking it up so that it is covered - for example mine must be locked up with a Secured by design gold rated lock and locked to something solid and is not covered if I leave it locked in a public place for more than 48 hours.

If you are keeping it in a shed or garage at home, the insurance company will also likely have rules about the quality of locks and security on the shed.

They are desirable to steal - but they are also great and make cycling accessible in a wider range of circumstances.

I know people are talking about the removeable batteries, we have two bikes with these and they are so helpful! But as for your question, for the electric bike where the battery does not come out, we have a wire that comes through our back door into the garden just while we charge them :) You could also fit an outdoor socket though. If you need more help there's a good article on step by step how to charge your electric bike :)

Make sure the outdoor wire is weather proof also

I got an electric conversion kit, which allows me just to have a bit of extra power on my existing bike. (New house meant new, much longer and hillier commute). It has a small handle-bar mounted battery pack that I do take off when I lock the bike up. The weight's not a problem as I only ever use the battery pack for getting to and from work, so I'm not having to lug it around when I'm shopping. It works really well for me, but might not be a solution if he wants all the power all the time!

And having a central or rear mounted battery shouldn't really effect the handling at all. I can have a very well-laden pannier bag on the back, and even with all the weight on one side it makes no discernible difference.

We have a socket fitted in our garage and charge the bike up in there.

Outside sockets on the house for ours. If not I'd just bring it in or run extension cable.

Yes to removable batteries but if you don't already have a weatherproof outdoor socket I'd highly recommend getting one put in. It's not terribly expensive and they are so useful for garden power tools, lighting etc.

Ours is charged in the house and stored in the house due to multiple thefts of electric bikes in the area.
The battery is removable but we dont want to risk it even with a large dog loose on the property

Many insurers require them to be kept in a locked building or if outside I know Dp must lock it with a certain type of bike lock to something buried in concrete and remove the battery or his insurance is void

I realise this thread is heading for zombie status, but I read a very relevant blog post about bike batteries this morning. It was saying that for optimum capacity you should charge your bike battery at around room temperature. At colder temperatures the capacity drops, so when you start using it it will drain much quicker. If it’s very hot the capacity does increase but charging at high temperatures will decrease the battery’s lifespan.

So those of you with outside sockets might want to bring the battery inside in winter or on very hot days.

Thanks ScentOfSawdust, that's definitely something that I've noticed with my car in the winter. DS loves his bike so much that we let him bring it into the hall, so it always gets charged a room temperature, it's a very pampered bike.

Just don’t charge the bike/battery by your only fire escape door! In rare circs they can catch fire, and you must leave yourself a way out.

(Not an anti ebike comment - I love them! But do charge safely…)

Eek. Good tip.

We used to sometimes have three bikes in our narrow hall. I changed the side gate so it could be locked and unlocked from the outside and I got a new secure bike shed and now they’re banished! (They are occasionally allowed into the kitchen if they need urgent maintenance and it’s pissing down. I’m not cruel…)